godspeed, all the bakers at dawn

[redfoliage]

[So that was. Bad. That was all really bad and now the group's down by four and while there are some things that really ought to be discussed, probably, immediately after that cavalcade of misfortune is not the time to do it. So everyone should probably disperse a bit? Do whatever it is they're going to do tonight. Breathe, decompress, shower (alone, Ibara, we are all doing that alone). Or just watch the roombas do their thing in here; it matters reasonably little in the end.

For what it's worth, Garista is in that later camp; he doesn't seem too inclined to sleep, maybe he'll do that later, but for the time being he's just going to watch the robots as they go about their business in the kitchen. Once it's cleared out a bit...

Well, he's not Atra, but he's lived alone for a while. Basic cooking isn't completely beyond him.

He's not really accustomed to doing a lot of cooking, mind you, and after some time has passed he's created, like. The sort of soup that's going to keep you alive and not kill you and actually be pretty decent if you're not overly picky, but is really just 20% actual ability to cook and 80% "I have hands and can throw things in a pot and by god, I'm in the right mood to do that." If you're not into whatever kind of...irritation soup he's got going on here, there's also an amount of strong tea that only happens as a result of sheer, unbridled neuroticism? Whatever. If you feel picky, do something about it yourself.

He's not offended if you people would prefer to be alone. Notes under doors for all of you, though, in the event that you don't.

At least try to eat something and get whatever you need to out of your system. The cafeteria has been cleaned in the event that you don't feel like being by yourself.

Don't do anything ill-advised. We'll work through it.

- Garista

So there's that.]

Comments

[hyping]

[ Akira is not around for the first half of the party. He's decided to try to nap off everything that just happened with absolutely no success, so he can absolutely be bothered in Room 12 if anyone for whatever reason feels the need to say something to him.

However, he does come to the cafeteria for a brief period of time after finally getting around to reading Garista's note. He goes to make himself a bowl of soup and will absolutely help himself to some of that strong tea. He fully intends on taking what he needs to so he can sit, well, in a corner or go back to his room with the food. However, if anyone needs to talk to him, he won't turn anyone away. He just won't be his typical cheeky self, for obvious reasons. ]

room 12

[hebibara]

[ You know what, this probably really isn't the time, but he's going to stop over there quick before he goes to the cafeteria.

He knocks twice on the door. ]

[hyping]

[ It takes a moment, but Akira shuffles over to the door and sees...Ibara? Huh. He's not sure what to expect here, but sure. He'll take whatever Ibara has to say to him. ]

Hi. Do you need something?

[hebibara]

I thought it best to make my position clear while this was still fresh on your mind: Do not settle for someone opting out of inspection next time. I agreed that the lead you ended up pursuing was a reasonable one given the information we had, but I'm not convinced that we actually saw all of the evidence that could have been available to us.

[hyping]

Got it.

[ He sounds pretty resigned when he says it. He's not even sure if he feels confident enough to lead such a thing next time, but he's not feeling up to voicing that concern. I'm so sorry he's like this. ]

Anything else?

[hebibara]

Good; I will hold you to it. I believe that will be all.

[ There's probably more he could say, but he's not the sort of person to say it. So with a rather curt nod, he'll be on his way. ]

[hyping]

Alright. Fair enough.

[ He, too, feels like he should say something else, but...he has nothing. Ibara's right, in the end, even if it stings. ]

I'll remember that for next time.

[ Whenever that happens. ]

cafeteria

[onemillion]

[Ah, there's Akira. Rossiu was starting to wonder if he'd have to go knock on Akira's door to get the chance to speak with him (not that he'd blame him, certainly) but it's good that Akira's getting something to eat at least.]

Do you mind if I join you?

[He only has tea at the moment since he already ate, but he does want to talk and now seems like... well, it's definitely not a great time, but better to get it over with.]

[hyping]

[ Ah, hey there, Rossiu. Akira looks over at him and manages a nod. Seems like they're both not doing so hot tonight, which is understandable. ]

Not at all.

[ He sits down at a nearby empty table. Honestly...as bad as he's feeling, some company would be nice. ]

How are you doing?

[onemillion]

[A nod, and Rossiu sits across from Akira.]

I... Well, I've certainly been better.

[That's understating it a bit.]

I imagine you're feeling the same right now.

[You know. Absolutely horrid about what happened.]

[hyping]

[ He nods quietly before taking a sip of his tea. He's not actually that thirsty, he just...needs a moment to think about how to articulate how he's feeling.

All he can settle on is this: ]

I don't know where to start. So...if there's anything you want to say, go ahead.

[onemillion]

I understand.

[He's not really sure where to start either, but there is one place he can think of as he stares down at his cup of tea.]

I don't blame you for what happened. I want to make that perfectly clear. We were acting on the information we gathered and our limited time to fit it all together and make sense of it. The conclusion you came to made sense to me and it seemed to be the only direction we had to pursue.

I cannot speak for the others, but I understand that you were doing your best to work with what we had. The conclusion we reached was wrong but... I appreciate your willingness to work toward it even when faced with such uncertainty.

[It's partially because taking initiative, especially in such a situation, is extremely difficult but a valuable trait, and partially because... well, he can see where Akira might try to blame himself solely for this, when it isn't his fault. It's not exactly a good speech, but Rossiu's never been the best at them to begin with.]

[hyping]

[ Ah.

It's...really surprising that Rossiu's saying this. Akira got the impression that Rossiu might've chastised him in the way Ibara did, for not getting the right info -- enough info, even -- but this is coming from a place of understanding. He appreciates it, even if the look on his face is one of surprise. ]

...Thank you.

[ It's all he can manage for a moment, but he doesn't want to leave things at that. ]

I relied too much on hypotheticals. If I hadn't...maybe...

[ Well. He won't finish that thought, because he knows that he's going to regret what happened for the rest of his life. ]

We won't get Lalli, Atra, Giorno or Beckett back, but we have to do better next time. Even so, I don't blame you or anyone else either. [ He shakes his head. ] I appreciate your help today, for what it's worth.

[onemillion]

In the end, all we can do is act on what we have. Hypotheticals seem like the only way to proceed, considering most of us have no experience with this.

[Murder in general he means, but solving mysteries works too. How many of us are actually genre savvy here, huh??]

That's how we have to proceed, yes. We can't bring them back, but we can still ensure that we get rid of the aliens. We'll do better next time.

[Both because they really don't have a choice, and because they know what to expect now.]

It... isn't going to be easy going forward. But I'm confident that we can find a way to work together.

[hyping]

...Yeah. We really don't have a detective on board, do we?

[ Which is a reason for them to be kinder to themselves, he realizes, but it's hard to be when an innocent man was given the death sentence. Akira played no small role in that, too. ]

That's all we can do. Next time, we'll lok at all the evidence and come to a more solid conclusion.

[ Because lord, they sure overlooked some stuff, now that he thinks about it. ]

... This isn't fair. To any of us.

[onemillion]

Agreed. We have a better idea of what to look at and look for now, at least.

[It doesn't make Lalli's death and their own failure any easier, but the only thing left to do is keep moving forward.

Akira's words get him to pause, like he hadn't even thought about it. After a moment, Rossiu nods.]

...It isn't. It's unfortunate that there isn't any other way to handle all of this.

[you'd think a spaceship would at least have cameras everywhere?? or that there'd be a more accurate way to pinpoint who's an alien??? it's almost like this is a murdergame.]

[ltcommandroid]

[Data isn't around for the first part of the party either, so Akira's absence isn't really noticed. When he arrives, though, he does make an effort to catch Akira before he vanishes.]

Akira. May I speak with you for a moment?

[hyping]

[ He doesn't know what to expect from Data, either, but he'll give the android his (almost full) attention. ]

Of course. What is it, Data?

[ltcommandroid]

I would like to assure you that what just happened was not your fault. You should not blame yourself.

[Said very earnestly and matter-of-factly - just cut right to the heart of the matter, then, huh.]

[hyping]

[ Even though he's heard this from Rossiu, hearing it again still manages to stun him into silence. He wasn't expecting this from Data. ]

You really think so?

[ He doesn't sound entirely convinced that this wasn't largely his fault, but he wants to at least hear what Data has to say about it. ]

[ltcommandroid]

I do. It was the captain's responsibility to ensure that anyone onboard accused of a crime received a fair and legal trial.

[woooo let's drag higgs a bit]

You presented a theory, as did many others, in good faith. [this is the kind of tag that gets screenshotted when it turns out Akira's revealed as an alien this weekend but here we are]

[hyping]

[ :D ]

I did, but I pushed it too hard without looking at all of the evidence.

[ That was his biggest mistake in the trial. ]

I was too desperate. We were running out of time and we had nothing, and it was all I could think of.

[ltcommandroid]

You cannot expect yourself to always respond perfectly in a desperate scenario. Especially when you have no training.

[Even Starfleet officers freak out and do the wrong thing, and they're specifically taught how to mostly keep their composure.]

[hyping]

...Well, you have a point.

[ He's conceding to that, at least. ]

If you want to tell me - who did you vote for, Data?

[ltcommandroid]

I abstained from voting. I did not believe I had sufficient information at that time.

[Not that he does now, either, but. He's trying to phrase it in a way that won't make Akira feel worse?]